Recently, an unnamed source from Tanwan Game, the publisher behind Legend of the Moon and multiple web based Legend of Mir clones, broke the news online that the company is having a large-scale layoff. According to the post, the lay-off operations started 2 months ago, and for the employees not affected by this, benefits including afternoon snacks, birthday gift credit cards and even annual bonus are all canceled. The employee also believes there will be a universal salary cut announced in the coming month.
The original post first appeared on an anonymous social platform for tech industry workers
Chinese media outlet Hongxin News has confirmed the credibility of the information. Several Tanwan Games employees have got in touch with Hongxin and expressed dissatisfaction with the sudden layoff, especially with the low compensation Tanwan Game is issuing at the moment. When asked the reason behind the layoff, the employees assumed that it was probably due to the rising cost of marketing spending and government policies that forbid some of Tanwan’s proven marketing strategies.
Tanwan Game was established in 2015, and enjoyed huge success in publishing web-based Legend of Mir clone games. Legend of the Moon was by far their most successful game, flourishing on intensive in-game purchase schemes and viral marketing strategies. These marketing campaigns featuring 90s and early 2000s’ most prominent pop stars are crude, repetitive and effective. Despite the controversies surrounding Legend of Moon and its marketing, the game still enjoyed a monthly revenue of 200 million CNY (~ 31.3 million USD) in 2018.
The sprite-based graphic is an iconic feature of the game
Legend of the Moon hired award-winning actors as their game ambassadors
So far, Tanwan Game has not yet responded to any media request on the layoff situation. But according to Tanwan Game’s official website, the company is still recruiting various positions, including live game streamers and video editors.
Source:
https://finance.sina.com.cn/tech/2021-11-25/doc-ikyamrmy5058272.shtml